In April, 2nd Graders embarked upon the City Blocks Panorama to build a scale model of an ideal city using key city-planning principles and imagination.
 

Originally inspired by the 1963 World’s Fair Panorama at the Queens Museum, this Dalton tradition began in the 1990s and has evolved over its 20+ years to incorporate lessons on teamwork, zoning, architectural detail, scale/proportion, and environmental sustainability. 
 
The children began by learning how Manhattan’s grid of streets and avenues was conceived in 1811 and how it subsequently changed the landscape and progress of the city. They learned the terms for major zones of urban planning: residential, commercial, institutional, industrial & manufacturing, and parks & open spaces.  
 
Next, they walked the school neighborhood streets with an educator from their local preservation group, Friends of the Upper East Side Historic District, looking at what the architectural details of buildings can tell us about their function. 
 
The next part of the assignment tasked students with brainstorming NYC building types, sorting them into “needs” and “wants” and zoning categories before collaborating to finalize the selected structures.

Over the last two months, each 2nd grader used what they learned in class to design and build detailed model buildings. Small blocks of wood, tempera paint, wood glue, paint pens, and various recycled collage materials became tiny apartment buildings, schools, hospitals, banks, and houses of worship. They also became bowling alleys, salons, arcades, movie theaters, and more. Each child also set aside an area on their block for an open "green space," to ensure that nature and fresh air are an integral part of the city. The final detail was adding colorful LED lights that correspond to the various planning zones, also inspired by those at the Queens Museum Panorama.
 
The exhibit is a must-see event for everyone in the Dalton community!